J. R. R. Tolkien filled his Lord of the Rings universe with all kinds of intriguing figures. From greedy Dwarves to war-like Elves, there’s a lot to like, but there are figures that need more attention -- Treebeard and the Ents. When looking at them, one has to start at the beginning. Many of Middle-earth's creatures were downright evil. That’s because after the Valar created Arda, Morgoth set his mind on becoming more powerful than any other being, but he was unable to subdue Eru. So, Morgoth fled Valinor, entered Middle-earth and became its first Dark Lord. There, he set out to subdue as much of creation as possible with a will to dominate and a heart for revenge.

Morgoth designed werewolves, dragons and vampires to be his servants, but he did worse than that. When Morgoth made Balrogs, Orcs and Trolls, he actively corrupted what was good. Balrogs were fallen Maiar; Orcs created and corrupted from Elves, but in a lesser-known fact, Trolls came from Ents. As such, those tree-herding creatures are rather intriguing, so here’s a quick look at the anatomy of the Ents.

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Treebeard Was The Oldest Being In Middle-Earth

While it’s true that Treebeard was the oldest being in Middle-earth, it comes with a bit of a caveat. For starters, some Lord of the Rings fans would contend that Tom Bombadil was older, but Treebeard certainly claimed the title, and Gandalf seemed to support it. Past that, Ents were made after Elves and Dwarves. However, Dwarves were mortal, and all of the firstborn Elves had died or returned to Valinor. So, while Treebeard wasn’t the oldest living being in Arda, he had been in Middle-earth the longest.

Ents Were Made In Response to Dwarves

The hobbit Thorin and his dwarves

Interestingly enough, Ents were made in response to the creation of Dwarves. After Eru created Elves and Men, a Valar named Aulë became impatient for their awakening and tried to make creatures of his own -- the Dwarves. However, he didn’t have the power to create life, and after being reprimanded by Eru, he prepared to destroy his failed endeavor. Eru had mercy, though, and adopted them as his children. Seeing Eru’s mercy, a Valar named Yavanna sought life for the Ents so that something could be responsible for protecting the trees from Dwarves and Orcs. Eru complied by either sending spirits to embody trees or creating spirits that became “treelike,” thus, the Ents were born.

Elves Taught The Ents To Speak

Lord of the Rings - Elves header

Although most Ents spoke Entish, it wasn’t their first language. In the early days of Middle-earth, Elves loved to talk to everything, and they often talked with the Ents. By doing so, the Elves gave them the desire to speak. Accordingly, the Elves taught them the language of the Noldor -- Quenya. So, as Treebeard said, the Elves cured “the Ents of their dumbness.” Of course, the Ents spoke the language in their slowed-down, methodical manner.

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Ents Don’t Die - They Become More "Treeish"

Much like the Elves, Ents were immortal, barring extreme force or sufficient fire. That was the reason Ents moved so slowly and methodically. They always saw the big picture because they had lived for thousands and thousands of years. Just because Ents were immortal, didn't mean that they didn’t age. The older Ents grew, the more treeish they became. So, eventually, they planted roots and effectively retired from tree herding.

All Ents Are Male (Kind of)

A close-up of The Ents in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the RIngs movies

When Yavanna created Ents, she made them both male and female, but all of the Entwives were missing by the Third Age. Sauron destroyed their lands during the Second Age, and no one had seen bark or leaf of them since. That also meant no Entlings in Middle-earth because there were no Entwives for the Ents to mate with. In fact, where the Entwives disappeared to remains one of the biggest mysteries in all of The Lord of the Rings. Aragorn promised that the forests would expand under his kingship, but Treebeard thought that it was unlikely that the Ents would ever find the Entwives.

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